From March through August 2025, we’re in for a jam-packed sports schedule, with some of the biggest events coming to a screen near you. The Champions League, Cricket World Cup, EuroBasket, and UFC fight nights are just a few of the marquee tournaments that will drive traffic, headlines, and user engagement across the globe.
Each year, we see a surefire pattern: once the games get under way, the activity online follows. Sports seasons bring in huge traffic spikes, increased click-through rates (CTRs), and conversions that explode in numerous industries.
Advertisers should be at the forefront to take advantage of this prime opportunity to have a major influence.
Why Advertisers Should Care About Sports Events
Sports events don’t just entertain — they involve. Major games create a deep emotional connection with viewers, making them extremely engaged, active consumers. They’re primed for timely promotions, such as last-minute offers, registration, or bonus promos. This emotional intensity fuels campaign performance.
Take Euro 2024 or Copa America, for example. iGaming marketers who planned their campaigns to coincide with match days and utilized Auto Creatives saw spectacular lifts in CTR and conversions.
But it’s not only iGaming that benefits from the sports season boost.
Ad Trends: The Impact of Sports Events on Traffic
As Senior Account Strategist Sotos Charalambous has pointed out, sports season traffic surges are not limited to sporting industry sectors. Non-sport verticals like utilities (VPNs), eCommerce, and social media brands all see notable upticks during sports events. With increased online users and everyone watching sports, these sectors get a pleasant activity boost.
What’s on the Calendar in 2025?
2025 will see one of the busiest sports seasons yet, offering advertisers some of the strongest traffic-building and conversion-driving opportunities. Here is a brief rundown of the big events that you should be on the lookout for:
Top Performing Ad Formats and Verticals
Sports campaigns once relied largely on Push and Interstitial ads, but all that is history. While these formats are still popular, others like In-Page Push and Social traffic are becoming more popular, especially when paired with Auto Creatives and event-based targeting. These formats offer flexibility and instant engagement, which are best suited for the fluid nature of sports events.
What’s Working for Sports Events
Over the past few years, the marketers who heard advertisement formats like Push, Popunder, and In-Page Push during sporting seasons have seen tremendous performance. It’s not just about advertisement formats, however. Certain verticals are particularly well-suited to such action-packed moments.
iGaming is the undisputed winner, but other non-sport verticals like utilities, eCommerce, and even finance stand to gain from the traffic of sporting seasons. The urgency introduced by knockout games or final rounds introduces heightened form fills, sign-ups, purchasing, and conversions across the board.
The Power of Global GEOs
Sports seasons also present an opportunity to reach emerging GEOs that prosper during big events. Brazil, Nigeria, South Africa, and India were among the nations that showed robust traffic growth during recent tournaments, with these markets reporting top results in all verticals, not just sports-related verticals.
As Sotos describes, “Brazil is a gigantic market with a fervent fan base, and Africa, nations like South Africa and Nigeria, are gaining momentum. Asia, India and Pakistan particularly, is a top-spending region. These markets yield great dividends when campaigns are well timed and targeted.”
The take-away? GEO targeting isn’t where the event is happening — it’s where the spotlight.
Pro Tips for Campaign Planning
And now that we know about the traffic surges, the formats, and the GEOs, how do you leverage this momentum for your campaigns? Following are some of Sotos Charalambous’s best tips on how to optimize your campaigns in order to make them sport-event optimized:
Choose the Right Offer for the Right GEO
It’s critical to tailor your offer to the region you’re promoting. Markets are different in their behavior, and what’s good in Brazil won’t be good in the CIS markets. “Choosing the right offer for the right marketplace is key,” says Sotos. “Spend time finding out about your brand and the traffic provider before going live.”
Run Classic Push Campaigns (With and Without Interest Targeting)
Push campaigns remain number one as a high performer, but you have to have them set up in a manner. Consider running both with and without interest targeting campaigns to reach different segments of traffic. Testing both can give you valuable information on audience behavior and expand your reach.
Make Customized Creatives for Match Days
Looking to increase CTRs? Make your creative match the event. Tailor your message for every match. For instance, “Barcelona vs Real: Show Your Team Spirit!” or “Get Ready for Tonight’s Big Match!” type ads are more appealing during big games. Bold CTAs, emojis such as ???? or ????, and personalized text all boost engagement.
Test Landing Pages Early
Start testing landing pages before your campaign starts. Use an A/B testing tactic from the beginning, starting with your “Homepage” and “Bonus” streams. As you receive feedback, test again with your “Registration Page.” Optimization early on prevents you from losing traffic worth a lot.
Leverage Auto Creatives for Speed
When high-demand sports seasons are underway, urgency is everything. Auto Creatives allow you to rotate ads automatically and modify your messaging in real-time without having to do it manually. This is especially called for on high-stakes match days, like knockout stages, when users’ attention shifts quickly.
Time Your Launch for Maximum Impact
Timing is everything. Launch your campaigns a few days prior to the event to generate awareness. Keep the messages fresh and active as the match day approaches. In case of multiplicity of match days for tournament, long-term campaigns will work, but in case of singles finals, short and powerful pulses will prove to be most beneficial.
Final Thoughts
The more the sports season advances, the more opportunities there are for advertising. Whether your target is iGaming, eCommerce, utilities, or some other sector, campaigns timed to coincide with major sporting events will pay the highest dividends.
Start by aligning your offers, fine-tuning your creatives, and syncing your campaigns with the event schedule. With the right timing, geo-targeting, and tools like Auto Creatives, you’ll be primed to take full advantage of the momentum this season brings.
